(Extract from the Harikathas of Shyam das Baba Mahārāj)
sadayam hridayam yasya vacaha sattva bhusitham,
kayaha parahitam yasyah kalihi tasyo koroti kim
(from Nīti Śāstra)
Gauḍīya Goṣṭhī Pati Śrī Śrīla Bhakti Siddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda told that to do harināma and to meet with Hari is all the same. This you can realize only when you are totally dedicated to the Lotus Feet of a nāma-bhajana ācārya. Those who are nāma-bhajana ācāryas they are the topmost.
If you commit any kind of aparādhā to the Lotus Feet of harināma, then that is dangerous. But still there is some hope because Nam Prabhu can excuse you. But if you commit any offense unto the Lotus Feet of any nāma-bhajana ācārya, then there is no way you can get excused.
The śloka I stated is not from Śrīmad–Bhāgavatam, but still, it is very important. The verse is saying that if your heart is merciful and if your speech is always telling the truth, and also if your body is totally dedicated for the real benefit of the common people, then what [harm] can Kali do?
What is the actual meaning of jīve doya? To show mercy to some jīva does not mean that I can allow him to do whatever he likes. Fanciful minds can expect something unusual from guru-Vaiṣṇava. But guru-Vaiṣṇava have the responsibility to guide a jīvatma in an absolute way.
Sometimes somebody can think this way – “Oh! That Mahārāj is very soft, he speaks very softly, so he is very good for me.” Whereas in Nīti Śāstra it is written that a father must get control over his child. If he allows his son to run his life fancifully, then sooner or later the son will become a beggar. If it is so important for a material father that he should get control over his son, then what to speak of the spiritual father?
Gurudeva maintains a disciple in two ways: through affection and through chastisement (lālana and tāḍana). Lālana means giving affection and tāḍana means to discipline or chastise, which is another aspect of affection. If it is one-sided (only giving affection but not chastising), then the affection is not complete. It will only be 50%. When there is only affection, but not chastisement, then in such a case, the affection cannot be deemed complete (pūrṇa-sneha). So, guru will offer both. He will discipline as well as give affection (sāśana and lālana). Sāśana means disciplining through chastisement even by physically beating, if required, as the guru deems fit. That is called actual mercy.
There is a story in this context which I heard from my śikṣā guru Śrīla Bhakti Vijñāna Bhāratī Mahārāj. He told that once he witnessed two parents, both father and mother, tie their child to a lamp-post and proceed to beat him severely. He could not bear to see it. He shouted at them, “Stop! Why are you beating him?” At that time, he was strong and stout and additionally, he had worn a cap because it was winter. Assuming the child had stolen something, he said, “If anything is stolen, take it from me and leave him.”
The man bowed to his feet offering praṇāmas and said, “This boy is my own child.” Śrīla Mahārāj was stunned, thinking, “Who have I come to rescue? How can my affection for the child be greater than that of his own father?”
The boy’s mother was standing a little distance away and watching. Then he could see both parents together beating the child. He asked, “Why are you doing this?”
The man replied, “I am a daily labourer in a mill. I have no fixed holidays in a week. I get one day off for sure. In rotation, we take our holiday. And today was my day off, so I am at home. As we both are illiterate, we have appointed a tutor to teach our child, and have admitted him to a reputable school. They usually do not give admission to poor people like us but our mill owner is a big donor to the school and so on the strength of his word, they have admitted our son in the school. But he does not study. He does not respect his mother’s words because he is the only child and his mother loves him so much that she does not punish him. But I chastise him very much, and beat him, too.
“Today the tutor left saying, ‘I will not come tomorrow onwards to teach as your child does not study. You are a poor man – your money will be wasted and my name will be tarnished because, to date, none of my students have failed. All have passed. I am only a private tutor. Now I have so many students coming to me that I cannot take any more. On the recommendation of your boss, I accepted him but I will not come tomorrow.’ When his mother reported this to me, I asked, ‘Where is the boy?’ She said, ‘He is playing there with marbles.’ So, I caught him. If I do not discipline him now, he will become a fool like me. He will become a daily wage earner like me. If he gets wages he will eat; and on a given day, if he does not earn wages, he will have to starve.”
Then Mahārāj contemplated whether his attempt to rescue the child by offering some money was more compassionate than that of his father beating him.
If one thinks, I will only follow such a guru who can give me some sweet words and allows me to do all nonsense then in that case surely, I am going to ruin myself. Otherwise, what use is going through all the Scriptures like Hari-bhakti-vilāsa, Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, etc? We have to be surrendered to those Vaiṣṇavas who are not only speaking nice philosophy, but rather we must sell our head unto the Lotus Feet of those great devotees who have both ācāra-prācāra.
Śrīla Bhaktivinod Ṭhākura is going to give us a warning: “When saintly persons follow religious principles, this is called ācāra, the proper code of conduct. To preach those religious principles to other living entities in the world is called pracāra, preaching. If one wants to engage in the activities of ācāra and pracāra, one should first learn the saintly persons’ code of conduct. Some people, after learning something try to preach, whereas they are not going to follow what they are speaking. Then the result is very dangerous. If one does not personally follow the religious principles and only goes for preaching, in that case he creates a great deal of disturbance in the world”. (Sajjana-toshani 4/2)
Śrīla Guru Mahārāj in a very joking mood used to say “para upadeśa paṇḍita.” You can advise others but you are not practicing yourself. Only advising and not following, that kind of advice is very dangerous. One has to always check if the teacher is also himself following what he says. Otherwise, such kind of advice can ruin the whole world.
We want to follow all the teachings of Śrīla Prabhupāda, Śrīla Bhaktivinod Ṭhākura, Rūpa Gosvāmī, Sanātana Gosvāmī, Jīva Gosvāmī, Raguṇatha das Gosvāmī, etc.
Suppose one boy is not reading for the whole year, but just before the examination he wants to find out the easiest procedure through which he is likely to come out successful. In that case this is called a made-easy procedure. This is the case which we call a sahajiyā procedure in our bhajana – It’s not our way.
Why I am saying it in this way? Because first I want to make a nice background for you all. Then I can speak about Nāmācārya Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura. I have no power do speak about Nāmācārya Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura, but only by the blessings of guru-varga and Haridāsa Ṭhākura I can try. I have to depend on their mercy. Out of my own false ego only I can speak some dry philosophy. I can show how Haridāsa Ṭhākura is Jagad Guru (the guru for the whole world).
Sanātana Gosvāmī, the topmost tattva-vid–ācārya himself, is already giving us a direct indication in Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta:
“apane acare keha, na kare prācāra
prācāra karena keha, na karena ācāra
ācāra, prācāra—namera karaha dui karya
tumi—sarva guru, tumi jagatera arya”
( C.c 3.4.102-3)
Some devotees follow the practice of bhakti but do not preach, whereas others preach but do not practice properly. By your behaviour and preaching, you simultaneously perform both duties in relation to the Holy Name. You are the guru of the whole world, for you are the most advanced devotee in the world.
Śrīla Bhaktivinod Ṭhākura in one of his kīrtanas is also writing:
“kṛṣṇera saṁsāra koro chadi anācāra
jīve doya, kṛṣṇa-nama-sarva-dharma-sara”
(text 4 from Song– Nadiya Godrume)
Give up all your bad dealings, habits, and behaviour and enter into kṛṣṇa-saṁsāra. The only relationship is with Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Establish yourself in that relationship. Shower mercy on all the jīvas seeing them as Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s and completely surrender unto the Holy Name of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. This is the essence of all dharma.
What does it mean? To distribute sweets, or to allow what they like? No not at all. Some say Śrīla Prabhupāda is speaking so tough, he is criticizing all the time, so they feel negative, but they should know clearly that in the way of God realization no compromise can be made with Maya. Also, maybe they are coming to attain Harikatha with some bad motive, so they cannot digest that kind of absolute truth.
Śrīla Prabhupāda himself said, “Most possibly I have given trouble to many people. Some of them might have thought about me that I am their enemy because I was obliged to speak the absolute truth for the absolute benefit of their bhajana. I was bound to put them in trouble for their absolute benefit. I hope that they can understand this point someday in the future. I wanted to engage them in unalloyed devotional service, so they misunderstood me.”- (Excerpt from the last lecture of Śrīla Prabhupāda)
The Nīti Śāstra says:
“sadayam hridayam yasya vacaha sattva bhusitham kayaha parahitam yasyah kalihi tasyo koroti kim”
If your heart is merciful and if your speech is always telling the truth, and also if your body is totally dedicated for the real benefit of the common people, then what can Kali do?
This verse from Nīti Śāstra is just fitting with the verse from Śrīla Bhaktivinod Ṭhākura which says:
“kṛṣṇera saṁsāra koro chadi anācāra
jīve doya, kṛṣṇa-nama-sarva-dharma-sara”
Give up all your bad dealings, habits, and behaviour and enter into kṛṣṇa–saṁsāra. The only relationship is with Śrī Kṛṣṇa; establish yourself in that relationship. Shower mercy on all the jīvas seeing them as Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s and completely surrender unto the Holy Name of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. This is the essence of all dharma.
Many people are coming to me and saying that “X-mission is doing so many social activities, but what is your Gauḍīya Mission doing?” Those X-Y-Z Missions, they are usually going to give such facilities which only relate to the material body and mind. Maybe at the time of flood or famine an ignorant common person can get material help from them, like food distribution, help from a helicopter or medicine and doctor, etc. But they forget that is not a permanent solution for their life. They forget this point. That is their foolishness. Whereas Gauḍīya Mission is always and every time seeking the absolute benefit for all jīvatmas irrespective of their cast and creeds or position. This is inconceivable so common people cannot understand.
To rescue a bonded soul from the jail (trap) of Maya and to send him (or her) to the eternal world to engage in the eternal service of the Supreme Lord is the topmost jīve-doya. Common people cannot conceive this most vital point. That is their great mistake for which they will have to cry forever.
Śrīla Prabhupāda wanted to say that it is our duty to find such a solution in our life so that in the future we need not depend on any other support. Suppose you are a beggar and somehow someone gives you something to eat, but in night time after going to the bathroom again you can feel hungry. Or if you are admitted to the hospital for some disease and you go to get the facility of a doctor and medicine. Still, you are not sure that you can get back your health. Even after some time there is every possibility that you can again become sick due to some other disease, so that is not a permanent solution.
Whereas unlike other Missions, Gauḍīya Mission is always and every time seeking the eternal benefit for all jīvatmas. This is called a permanent solution. Yoga, Jana, Karma, any other procedure cannot bring a permanent solution to your life. Only and only the pure devotional track shown by the Gauḍīya Mission is the most effective medicine for your life. But we are very very sorry to say that this kind of absolute benefit common people cannot understand. So usually, they are cheated. What to do?
From the stainless life of Śrīla Nāmācārya Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura we can get endless teachings in our bhajana. What kind of rigidity, what kind of tolerance, what kind of belief a devotee should have? All that we can learn from the life from Śrīla Nāmācārya Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura.
To speak tṛṇād api śloka is very easy, but to get its application in our own life is too difficult. So, we cannot yet qualify to chant actual harināma. Śrīman Mahāprabhu spoke the third śloka of Śikṣāṣṭakam:
tṛṇād api sunīcena
taror api sahiṣṇunā
amāninā mānadena
kīrtanīyaḥ sadā hariḥ (Śikṣāṣṭakam 3)
One should chant the Holy Name of the Lord in a humble state of mind, thinking oneself lower than the straw in the street; one should be more tolerant than a tree, devoid of all sense of false prestige, and should be ready to offer all respect to others. In such a state of mind one can chant the holy name of the Lord constantly.
Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura is the embodiment of the tṛṇād api śloka. Such humbleness as shown by Haridāsa Ṭhākura is quite impossible. Śrīman Mahāprabhu himself called Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura inside the Gambhīra mandira, but he was not ready to come due to his humbleness. He laid prostrated on the ground with grass in his teeth, shedding tears, and expressed his inability to come inside Gambhīra mandira. He took shelter in a solitary cell in Ṭoṭā-garden by the merci of Śrīman Mahāprabhu to chant the Holy Name of the Supreme Lord in a very exclusive way.
Śrīman Mahāprabhu used to meet Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura daily in the morning while coming back from the Jagannātha Temple. It was the standing instruction of Śrīman Mahāprabhu on Sevak Govinda to give the prasadam plate to Haridāsa Ṭhākura daily. So, we can realize the excellency of Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura .
Who cannot remember the case how Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura was bearing the torture by those Muslim home guards in twenty-two different markets in Kalna, still he was begging the Supreme Lord to forgive them.
Also, we can remember the case of how Lakṣahīra, the dangerous prostitute, was delivered by Śrīla Nāmācārya Haridāsa Ṭhākura by the unending power of Harināma Prabhu because he used to chant three Lakhs of pure harināma at Benapol bhajana-kuṭīra. How excellent the case? Ultimately Lakṣahīra, the dangerous prostitute, was converted into a great devotee (ācārya).
Also, we can remember that Śrī Mayadevi herself came to test the unending patience of Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura at Phuliyā bhajana-kuṭira at the bank of the Gaṅgā in Śāntipura she was bound to take harināma dīkṣā from Śrīla Nāmācārya Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura.
We cannot forget when Śrī Śāntipura-Nath Advaita Gosāi was bound to speak like a lion the following siddhānta about Śrīla Nāmācārya Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura when Śrīla Nāmācārya was feeling shy to accept the shraddha-plate of the father of Advaita Gosāi with a feeling of great humbleness. Śrīla Advaita Gosāi told:
tumi khāile haya koṭi-brāhmaṇa-bhojan
eta bali, śrāddha-pātra karāilā bhojana (C.c. Antya 3.222)
“Feeding you is equal to feeding ten million brāhmaṇas,” Advaita Ācārya said. “Therefore, accept this śrāddha-pātra.” Thus, Advaita Ācārya made him eat.
Referring to the Bhakti-sandarbha, text 177, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura quotes the following statements from the Garuḍa Purāṇa in this connection:
brāhmaṇānāṁ sahasrebhyaḥ satra-yājī viśiṣyate
satra-yāji-sahasrebhyaḥ sarva-vedānta-pāragaḥ
sarva-vedānta-vit-koṭyā viṣṇu-bhakto viśiṣyate
vaiṣṇavānāṁ sahasrebhya ekānty eko viśiṣyate
“A brāhmaṇa qualified to offer sacrifices is better than an ordinary brāhmaṇa, and better than such a brāhmaṇa is one who has studied all the Vedic scriptures. Among many such brāhmaṇas, one who is a devotee of Lord Viṣṇu is the best, and among many such Vaiṣṇavas, one who fully engages in the service of the Lord is the best.”
bhaktir aṣṭa-vidhā hy eṣā yasmin mlecche ’pi vartate
sa viprendro muni-śreṣṭhaḥ sa jñānī sa ca paṇḍitaḥ
tasmai deyaṁ tato grāhyaṁ sa ca pūjyo yathā hariḥ
“There are many different kinds of devotees, but even a Vaiṣṇava coming from a family of mlecchas or yavanas is understood to be a learned scholar, complete in knowledge, if he knows the Vaiṣṇava philosophy. He should therefore be given charity, for such a Vaiṣṇava is as worshipable as the Supreme Personality of Godhead.”
na me ’bhaktaś catur-vedī mad-bhaktaḥ śva-pacaḥ priyaḥ
tasmai deyaṁ tato grāhyaṁ sa ca pūjyo yathā hy aham
Lord Kṛṣṇa says, “Even if a nondevotee comes from a brāhmaṇa family and is expert in studying the Vedas, he is not very dear to Me, whereas even if a sincere devotee comes from a low family of meat-eaters, he is very dear to Me. Such a sincere pure devotee should be given charity, for he is as worshipable as I.”
Gaura Hari Haribol